Condenser

ABSTRACT

In a condenser, an inlet connector to which a refrigerant is supplied is connected to a side wall of a first header. The inlet connector is disposed in the vicinity of an upper end portion of the first header, and is connected to the side wall of the first header through an inclined portion, which is inclined downwardly at a predetermined angle. In addition, when the refrigerant is supplied from the inlet connector into the interior of the first header, the refrigerant is supplied toward a substantially central region in the heightwise direction of the first header through the inclined portion. Therefore, the refrigerant can be made to flow substantially in a uniform manner with respect to a plurality of tubes, which are arranged in parallel in the heightwise direction of the first header, and heat exchange can be carried out.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority fromJapanese Patent Application No. 2013-231681 filed on Nov. 8, 2013, thecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a condenser, which is capable ofcarrying out heat exchange with a refrigerant by having the refrigerantflow through an interior part of the condenser while allowing air topass through the condenser.

2. Description of the Related Art

Heretofore, in a vehicular air conditioner which is installed in avehicle such as an automobile or the like, a condenser is used thatcarries out heat exchange with a refrigerant that flows through theinterior of the condenser. The condenser is equipped with a pair ofheaders to which the refrigerant is introduced, and plural tubes thatare connected between the headers. In addition, the refrigerant that issupplied to one of the headers flows respectively through the connectedplural tubes which are separated mutually by equal intervals, andthereafter, the refrigerant passes through the other header and iscirculated back again to the one header. In this manner, heat exchangeis carried out between the refrigerant, which is circulated through thetubes, and air that passes through fins that are disposed between thetubes, thereby cooling the gaseous refrigerant to be liquefied.

With this type of condenser, in general it is understood that by havingthe refrigerant flow respectively in a uniform manner with respect tothe plural tubes, heat exchange can be carried out between the air andthe refrigerant with maximum efficiency and ideal output performance canbe obtained. However, in practice, it is easy for the refrigerant toflow to the tubes in the vicinity of the inlet pipe that is connected tothe header and to which the refrigerant is supplied, whereas conversely,it is difficult for the fluid to flow to the tubes at positions that aredistanced from the inlet pipe. Therefore, the flow amount of therefrigerant is non-uniform in the plural tubes, which leads to theoccurrence of deviations (unevenness) in heat exchange performancethroughout the condenser.

In an effort to solve this problem, for example, with the condenserdisclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-353936(Patent Document 1), a rectifying plate is disposed in the interior ofthe header perpendicularly with respect to the direction in which theinlet pipe and the tubes extend, and plural communication holes, whichcommunicate with the side of the tubes, are disposed in the rectifyingplate. The communication holes are formed in the rectifying plate withcircular shapes in the vicinity of the inlet pipe, and in the shape ofelongate holes with a large opening area at regions distanced from theinlet pipe. In addition, when the refrigerant is supplied to theinterior of the header from the inlet pipe, direct flow of therefrigerant to the tubes in the vicinity of the inlet pipe issuppressed, and the refrigerant flows through the communication holes tothe side of the tubes. Further, by making the opening areas of thecommunication holes different, a greater amount of the refrigerant flowsmore easily to the tubes that are distanced from the inlet pipe, andtherefore, the refrigerant flows in a substantially uniform manner withrespect to the plural tubes.

Further, with the condenser disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 06-074609 (Patent Document 2), a branched portion, whichis branched in a bifurcated shape, is provided on an inlet pipe that isconnected to the header. By connecting the branched portion with respectto the header, without disposing a rectifying plate in the interior ofthe header, supply positions for the refrigerant are distributed alongthe vertical direction of the header, whereby the flow amount of therefrigerant supplied to the plurality of tubes can be adjusted in asubstantially uniform manner.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A general object of the present invention is to provide a condenser inwhich, with a simple structure, it is possible for a refrigerant to becirculated uniformly with respect to a plurality of tubes, and for heatexchange to be carried out evenly, without causing an increase in flowresistance upon flow of the refrigerant through the tubes.

The condenser according to the present invention has a pair of headersdisposed with an interval mutually therebetween and including spacesinto which a refrigerant is introduced, plural tubes that extend in alongitudinal direction and opposite ends of which are connectedrespectively to the headers, and plural fins disposed between adjacentones of the tubes, wherein a condenser core is constituted from thetubes and the fins, and heat exchange of the refrigerant is performed inthe condenser core.

An inlet connector and an outlet connector are both connected to one ofthe headers. A first pipe is connected to the inlet connector and therefrigerant is supplied to the first pipe, and a second pipe isconnected to the outlet connector and the refrigerant is discharged fromthe second pipe. The inlet connector comprises in interior thereof aflow path through which the refrigerant flows. In addition, the flowpath is inclined at a predetermined angle toward a center of the spacealong a direction in which the space extends, and the space is arrangeduppermost in a direction of gravity in the one of the headers.

According to the present invention, in the condenser having the pair ofheaders disposed with an interval mutually therebetween, the inletconnector, with the first pipe connected thereto and to which therefrigerant is supplied, is connected to one of the headers, and theinlet connector has a flow path through which the refrigerant flows. Theflow path is inclined at a predetermined angle toward the center of thespace, which is arranged uppermost in the header in the direction ofgravity.

Accordingly, even in the case that the layout of the first pipe, whichis connected to the inlet connector, is restricted, and the inletconnector is arranged on the header in the vicinity of one end thereofalong the direction of extension of the space, the flow of therefrigerant, which is introduced to the inlet connector from the firstpipe, passes through the flow path, which is inclined toward the centeralong the direction of extension of the space, and can be deflected inthe direction of extension of the header.

As a result, the refrigerant can be supplied from the inlet connectortoward the center along the direction of extension of the space in theheader, and since the refrigerant can be made to flow substantially in auniform manner with respect to plural tubes that are connected to theheader, heat exchange with the refrigerant that flows through the pluraltubes can be performed evenly. Further, with a simple structure wherebythe flow path in the inlet connector is inclined toward the center alongthe direction of extension of the space, flow resistance does notincrease when the refrigerant flows through the flow path, and uponpassing through the header, the refrigerant is suitably distributed andcan be made to flow in an evenly divided fashion to each of the tubes.

Further, the flow path may include a first opening to which the firstpipe is connected, and a second opening connected to the one of theheaders, wherein the first opening and the second opening are arrangedso as not to overlap on a virtual plane of projection perpendicular toan axis of the first opening. As a result, the refrigerant can be madeto flow more effectively through the header, and can be distributedsuitably to each of the tubes.

Furthermore, the flow path may be equipped with a changing unitconfigured to change a direction of flow of the refrigerant from thefirst opening to the second opening. Consequently, the direction of flowof the refrigerant that flows through the flow path can be changed andflow resistance can be decreased.

Further still, the changing unit may comprise an inclined portion, whichis inclined toward a heightwise center of the condenser core. As aresult, merely by passing through the inclined portion, the direction offlow of the refrigerant can easily be changed.

Still further, the condenser core may include a first core section,through which the refrigerant flows from one of the headers in which theinlet connector is disposed to another of the headers, and a second coresection, through which the refrigerant after having circulated in theother of the headers then flows to the one of the headers. In addition,the space, which is arranged uppermost in the direction of gravity, maybe disposed in the first core section, and the inlet connector may bedisposed upwardly or downwardly in the direction of gravity with respectto a heightwise center of the space. By being constructed in thismanner, when the refrigerant is supplied to the header from the inletconnector, the refrigerant can effectively be introduced to asubstantially center region along the heightwise direction of theheader.

Further, the inlet connector and the one of the headers may be joined bybrazing. By this feature, for example, when the plural tubes are joinedwith respect to the header by brazing, since the operation of joiningthe inlet connector can be carried out at the same time, compared to asituation in which the operation of joining the inlet connector iscarried out separately from the header, the manufacturing process stepsrequired to produce the condenser can be reduced.

According to the present invention, the following effects and advantagesare obtained.

In the condenser having the pair of headers disposed with an intervalmutually therebetween, the inlet connector, with the first pipeconnected thereto and to which the refrigerant is supplied, is connectedto one of the headers, and the inlet connector has a flow path in theinterior thereof through which the refrigerant flows. By connecting theinlet connector to the header such that the flow path is inclined towardthe center of the space, which is arranged uppermost in the header inthe direction of gravity, for example, even in the case that the inletconnector is arranged in the vicinity of one end along the direction ofextension of the space, the flow of the refrigerant can be deflected inthe direction of extension of the header and the refrigerant can beintroduced into the header. As a result, the refrigerant can be suppliedfrom the inlet connector toward the center along the direction ofextension of the space in the header. Thus, since the refrigerant can bemade to flow substantially in a uniform manner with respect to pluraltubes that are connected to the header, heat exchange with therefrigerant that flows through the plural tubes can be performed evenly.Further, with a simple structure whereby the flow path in the inletconnector is inclined toward the center along the direction of extensionof the space, flow resistance does not increase when the refrigerantflows through the flow path, and upon passing through the header, therefrigerant is suitably distributed and can be made to flow in an evenlydivided fashion to each of the tubes.

The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will become more apparent from the following description whentaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which preferredembodiments of the present invention are shown by way of illustrativeexample.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overall cross sectional view of a condenser according to afirst embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view showing the vicinity of aninlet connector of a first header in the condenser of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3A is an enlarged cross sectional view of the condenser to which aninlet connector according to a first modification is applied;

FIG. 3B is an enlarged cross sectional view of the condenser to which aninlet connector according to a second modification is applied;

FIG. 4 is an overall cross sectional view of a condenser according to asecond embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view showing the vicinity of aninlet connector of a first header in the condenser of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is an overall cross sectional view of a condenser according to athird embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIG. 1, a condenser 10 includes a pair of headers, i.e., afirst header 12 and a second header 14, plural tubes 16, which aredisposed between the first header 12 and the second header 14, pluralfins 18 that are bent in a wavelike shape and disposed between the tubes16, and a third header 20 that is connected to the second header 14. Inaddition, in the condenser 10, the tubes 16 are arranged substantiallyin parallel, and the first and second headers 12, 14 and the thirdheader 20 are arranged on both ends of the tubes 16 extending in avertical direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2). Togethertherewith, the fins 18, which are bent in a wavelike shape from athin-plate material such as aluminum or the like, for example, aredisposed in a heightwise direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2)between two adjacent tubes 16.

The first and second headers 12, 14 are of a hollow cylindrical shapehaving a predetermined length in the heightwise direction of thecondenser 10 (the directions of arrows A1 and A2). On the first header12, which is disposed on one end side in the widthwise direction (thedirection of the arrow B1) of the condenser 10, there are connected aninlet connector 22 to which the refrigerant is introduced from theexterior, and an outlet connector 24 from which the refrigerant is ledout after having circulated in the interior of the condenser 10.

The inlet connector 22 is disposed on a side wall in the vicinity of theupper end of the first header 12, and the outlet connector 24 isdisposed on the side wall in the vicinity of the lower end of the firstheader 12. The inlet connector 22 and the outlet connector 24 aredisposed substantially in parallel mutually with one another. On theother hand, in the interiors of the first and second headers 12, 14,interior spaces 26 a, 26 b are formed respectively to which the suppliedrefrigerant is introduced.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inlet connector 22 is formed, forexample, from a metal material, and includes a main body portion 30 towhich a supply pipe (first pipe, first opening) 28 is connected andthrough which the refrigerant is supplied, and an inclined portion 32,which is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the main bodyportion 30.

The main body portion 30 is disposed substantially perpendicularly withrespect to the direction of extension of the first header 12 (thedirections of arrows A1 and A2), and an end of the inclined portion 32is connected to the side wall of the first header 12. Further, in acondition in which the inclined portion 32 is inclined downwardly in thedirection of gravity (the direction of the arrow A1) on the side wall ofthe first header 12, the inlet connector 22 is joined by brazing withrespect to the side wall.

On the other hand, in the interior of the main body portion 30, a firstsupply passage (flow path) 34 is formed that penetrates therethroughalong the axial direction (the directions of arrows B1 and B2), and thesupply pipe 28 to which a non-illustrated refrigerant is supplied isinserted and connected in the interior of the main body portion 30.

In the interior of the inclined portion 32, a second supply passage(flow path) 36 is formed, which penetrates along the axial direction andis inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the first supplypassage 34. One end of the second supply passage 36 is connected to thefirst supply passage 34, and the other end thereof is connected to thefirst header 12 and communicates with the interior of the first header12 through a communication hole (second opening) 38 that opens on theside wall of the first header 12.

More specifically, by the inlet connector 22, when the refrigerant ismade to flow from the first supply passage 34 to the second supplypassage 36, the direction of flow of the refrigerant is changed by theinclined second supply passage 36. Stated otherwise, the second supplypassage 36 functions as a changing unit for changing the direction offlow of the refrigerant that flows from the first supply passage 34.

Moreover, the angle of inclination of the inclined portion 32 is set toan acute angle, which is less than 90° with respect to the direction ofextension of the main body portion 30 (the directions of arrows B1 andB2).

The communication hole 38 is offset in a direction perpendicular to theaxis of the first supply passage 34, and more specifically, in thedirection of extension of the first header 12 (the directions of arrowsA1 and A2), the communication hole 38 is formed at a position which isoffset by a predetermined distance in a downward direction (thedirection of the arrow A1) with respect to the first supply passage 34.Stated otherwise, the first supply passage 34 and the communication hole38 (the end of the second supply passage 36) are disposed at a distanceso as not to overlap one another on a virtual plane of projectionperpendicular to the axis of the first supply passage 34.

The outlet connector 24, for example, is formed in a cylindrical shapefrom a metal material and is connected perpendicularly with respect tothe direction of extension (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of thefirst header 12. A discharge passage 40 penetrates along the interior ofthe outlet connector 24. In addition, a discharge pipe (second pipe) 42through which the refrigerant is discharged to the exterior is connectedto one end of the outlet connector 24, whereas the other end thereofcommunicates with the interior space 26 a of the first header 12 througha communication hole 44 that opens in the side wall of the first header12. By this feature, the interior space 26 a of the first header 12communicates with the discharge pipe 42 through the discharge passage 40of the outlet connector 24. In the same manner as the inlet connector22, the outlet connector 24 is joined by brazing with respect to theside wall of the first header 12.

Further, a partition wall 46 is disposed in the interior space 26 a ofthe first header 12 at a position upwardly (in the direction of thearrow A2) with respect to the connection location of the outletconnector 24. By the partition wall 46, the interior space 26 a isdivided into a first space 48 that communicates with the inlet connector22 and a second space 50 that communicates with the outlet connector 24.More specifically, the refrigerant, which is supplied from the inletconnector 22 to the first space 48 of the first header 12, and therefrigerant, which is to be discharged to the exterior from the secondspace 50 of the first header 12 through the outlet connector 24, areseparated from each other by the partition wall 46.

In addition, in the first header 12, ends of the plural tubes 16 areconnected to a side wall located on an opposite side from the side wallto which the inlet connector 22 and the outlet connector 24 areconnected, such that the ends of the tubes 16 communicate respectivelywith the first and second spaces 48, 50.

The second header 14 is disposed substantially in parallel with thefirst header 12, and is formed with a length in the heightwise direction(the directions of arrows A1 and A2) that is shorter than the length ofthe first header 12. An upper end of the second header 14 is disposedsubstantially at the same height as the upper end of the first header12, whereas the lower end thereof is disposed upwardly (in the directionof the arrow A2) with respect to the lower end of the first header 12.

Further, in the second header 14, other ends of the plural tubes 16 areconnected to a side wall that faces toward the side of the first header12 (in the direction of the arrow B1).

The third header 20, for example, is formed in a hollow cylindricalshape and is disposed laterally to the second header 14 in a direction(the direction of the arrow B2) away from the first header 12. Inaddition, the third header 20 is offset downwardly (in the direction ofthe arrow A1) with respect to the second header 14 by a predetermineddistance, and is arranged substantially in parallel with the secondheader 14.

A lower end side wall of the second header 14 and a side wall of thethird header 20, which face one another, are connected mutually by aconnecting pipe 52. The connecting pipe 52 is formed in a tubular shapehaving a communication path in the interior thereof. One end of theconnecting pipe 52 is inserted into the interior of the second header14, and another end thereof is inserted into the interior of the thirdheader 20, thereby placing the respective interior spaces 26 b, 26 c incommunication with each other. Consequently, the refrigerant that isintroduced to the second header 14 passes through the connecting pipe 52and is led into the third header 20.

Further, on the third header 20, among the plural tubes 16, other endsof a portion of the tubes 16, which are not connected to the secondheader 14, are connected to a side wall of the third header 20 thatprojects downwardly (in the direction of the arrow A1) with respect tothe second header 14, and these tubes 16 communicate with the interiorspace 26 c. More specifically, among the plural tubes 16, the portion ofthe tubes 16 that are connected to the third header 20 is formed with alength dimension that is longer than the tubes 16 that are connected tothe second header 14.

The tubes 16 are formed by flattened pipes that are made, for example,from an aluminum material, and are formed in straight line shapes havingpredetermined lengths. Additionally, as shown in FIG. 1, the tubes 16extend in a substantially horizontal direction (the directions of arrowsB1 and B2), and are disposed in plurality with a predetermined distancemutually therebetween in the heightwise direction (the directions ofarrows A1 and A2). Ends of the tubes 16 are connected respectively tothe first header 12, whereas the other ends of the tubes 16 areconnected respectively to the second header 14 or the third header 20.

The refrigerant, which is supplied from the inlet connector 22 to thefirst header 12, after having flowed to the second header 14 along thedirection of the arrow B2 through the plural tubes 16, passes from theinterior space 26 b of the second header 14 through the connecting pipe52, and moves into the interior space 26 c of the third header 20. Then,the refrigerant passes again through the tubes 16 along the direction ofthe arrow B1 and flows into the second space 50 of the first header 12,whereupon the refrigerant is discharged through the outlet connector 24.

With the condenser 10, among the plural tubes 16, a region where thefirst header 12 and the second header 14 are connected mutually througha plurality of the tubes 16 and the refrigerant flows into the secondheader 14 from the first header 12 functions as a condenser section(first core section) S1. On the other hand, a region where the thirdheader 20 and the first header 12 are connected through a plurality ofthe tubes 16 and the refrigerant is circulated back to the first header12 from the third header 20 functions as a supercooling section (secondcore section) S2.

In addition, the inlet connector 22 is disposed at a position on thefirst header 12 which is higher (in the direction of the arrow A2) thanan imaginary line M (=L/2) defined at one half of the height dimension Lof the condenser section S1.

It should be noted that, concerning the above-described condenser 10, acase has been described in which the condenser 10 is of a one-passstructure in which, in the condenser section S1 thereof, the refrigerantflows in one direction (the direction of the arrow B2) from the firstheader 12 toward the side of the second header 14.

The condenser 10 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention is constructed basically as described above. Next, operationsand advantages of the condenser 10 will be described.

At first, the refrigerant, which is in a high temperature high pressuregaseous state having been compressed by a non-illustrated compressor,passes through the supply pipe 28 and is supplied to the inlet connector22, and through the first and second supply passages 34, 36 of the inletconnector 22, the refrigerant is led into the first space 48 of thefirst header 12. In the inlet connector 22, the inclined portion 32,which is connected to the first header 12, is inclined at apredetermined angle downwardly in the direction of gravity (thedirection of the arrow A1) with respect to the main body portion 30, andcommunicates with the first space 48 through the second supply passage36. Therefore, the refrigerant is introduced into the first header 12while being directed toward the substantially center region thereofalong the heightwise direction (the direction of arrows A1 and A2) ofthe first space 48.

In this manner, the refrigerant not only is introduced in the vicinityof the upper end in the heightwise direction (the directions of arrowsA1 and A2) of the first header 12 where the inlet connector 22 isconnected, but also is introduced substantially in a uniform mannertoward the substantially center region and the downward vicinity alongthe heightwise direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of thefirst header 12. Stated otherwise, in the first header 12, therefrigerant is supplied in a roughly uniform manner toward thesubstantially center region and the lower end side in the first space48, while avoiding being supplied in a concentrated manner in thevicinity of the upper end where the inlet connector 22 is connected.

In addition, the refrigerant supplied to the first header 12 flowssubstantially in a uniform manner with respect to each of the pluralityof tubes 16, and having passed through the tubes 16, when therefrigerant flows to the side of the second header 14 (in the directionof the arrow B2), the refrigerant is cooled and liquefied by the airthat flows through and between the fins 18, and the liquefiedrefrigerant is introduced into the interior space 26 b of the secondheader 14. At this time, the refrigerant flows evenly with respect tothe plural tubes 16, whereby the refrigerant can be cooled evenly andefficiently.

The refrigerant then passes from the second header 14 through theconnecting pipe 52 and moves into the interior space 26 c of the thirdheader 20, and after being separated into gas and liquid components,only the liquid refrigerant passes through the plural tubes 16 that areconnected to the third header 20, and is further cooled by flowingthrough the tubes 16 to the side of the first header 12 (in thedirection of the arrow B1).

With the condenser 10, among the plural tubes 16, a region where thefirst header 12 and the second header 14 are connected mutually throughpart of the plurality of the tubes 16 and the refrigerant flows into thesecond header 14 from the first header 12 functions as one condensersection (first core section) S1, whereas a region where the third header20 and the first header 12 are connected mutually through the remainingtubes 16 and the refrigerant is circulated back to the first header 12from the third header 20 functions as a supercooling section (secondcore section) S2.

Lastly, the refrigerant in a liquefied state, which has been introducedthrough the tubes 16 into the second space 50 of the first header 12,passes through the discharge passage 40 of the outlet connector 24 andis led out to the discharge pipe 42.

In the foregoing manner, according to the first embodiment, in thecondenser 10, which includes the inlet connector 22 through which therefrigerant is supplied to the side wall of the first header 12 and theoutlet connector 24 through which the refrigerant is led out, forexample, even in the case that, due to the layout relationship of thesupply pipe 28 to be connected, the inlet connector 22 is disposed onthe first header 12 in the vicinity of the upper end of the first header12, by connecting the inclined portion 32, which is inclined downwardlyin the direction of gravity (in the direction of the arrow A1) withrespect to the side wall, the direction in which the refrigerant isintroduced with respect to the first header 12 can be deflecteddownwardly in the direction of gravity (the direction of the arrow A1).

For this reason, from the inlet connector 22, which is connected in thevicinity of the upper end of the first header 12, the refrigerant can besupplied toward a substantially center region in the heightwisedirection of the first header 12, accompanied by the refrigerant beingable to flow substantially evenly with respect to the plural tubes 16that are arranged in parallel in the heightwise direction. As a result,heat exchange is carried out evenly between the refrigerant and the airthat passes between the plural tubes 16, cooling of the refrigerant canbe performed efficiently, and the heat exchange capability of thecondenser 10 can be enhanced.

Further, with a simple structure whereby the inclined portion 32, whichis inclined downwardly, is provided in the inlet connector 22 thatsupplies the refrigerant to the first header 12, flow resistance is notincreased when the refrigerant flows through the first and second supplypassages 34, 36, and in the first space 48 of the first header 12, therefrigerant is suitably distributed and flows in an evenly dividedfashion to each of the tubes 16, whereby the flow amount of therefrigerant can be made substantially uniform.

Furthermore, in the case that the inlet connector 22 is disposed in thevicinity of the upper end of the first header 12 and at a positionupwardly (in the direction of the arrow A2) from the center (imaginaryline M) of the height dimension L of the condenser section S1 in thefirst header 12, since the refrigerant can be introduced suitablythrough the inlet connector 22 toward the substantially center regionalong the heightwise direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) ofthe first header 12, the refrigerant can effectively be made to flowsubstantially in a uniform manner to each of the respective tubes 16.

Further still, by providing the inlet connector 22 having the inclinedportion 32 that is inclined with respect to the main body portion 30,and connecting the inlet connector 22 to the first header 12, therefrigerant can be introduced while being directed toward thesubstantially center region along the heightwise direction (thedirections of arrows A1 and A2) of the first header 12. Therefore, forexample, compared with the structure, as in the condenser of theconventional technique, in which the connection region where the inletpipe is connected to the header branches in a forked manner, thecomponents that make up the condenser 10 can be simplified, and the flowresistance of the refrigerant that flows through the interior can befurther reduced.

Still further, by joining the inlet connector 22 and the outletconnector 24 by brazing with respect to the side wall of the firstheader 12, the plural tubes 16 can be joined simultaneously by brazingwith respect to the first and second headers 12, 14. As a result,compared to a situation in which the inlet connector 22 and the outletconnector 24 are joined with respect to the first header 12 separatelyfrom the tubes 16, the manufacturing process steps required to producethe condenser 10 can be reduced.

Further, the above-described inlet connector 22 is not limited to a casein which the first supply passage 34 to which the supply pipe 28 isconnected extends substantially in a horizontal direction (in thedirections of the arrows B1 and B2), whereas the second supply passage36 is inclined downwardly (in the direction of the arrow A1) withrespect to the first supply passage 34. For example, with an inletconnector 62 according to a first modification of a condenser 60, asshown in FIG. 3A, a first supply passage 64 and a second supply passage66 may be disposed along a straight line, and the second supply passage66 may be connected in an inclined manner with respect to the firstheader 12 toward the substantially center region along the direction inwhich the first header 12 extends. Stated otherwise, in the inletconnector 62, a supply passage that extends substantially in ahorizontal direction need not necessarily be provided, and only supplypassages that are inclined in a downward direction may be provided.

With the inlet connector 62 according to the first modification, forexample, when the end of the supply pipe 28 that is connected to thefirst supply passage 64 is connected in a downwardly inclined mannerfrom a location above the inlet connector 62, the supply pipe 28 cansuitably be connected substantially in a straight line with respect tothe first supply passage 64.

Further, with an inlet connector 72 according to a second modificationof a condenser 70, as shown in FIG. 3B, a first supply passage 74 may beinclined upwardly (in the direction of the arrow A2) toward the side ofa second supply passage 76 (in the direction of the arrow B2), and thesecond supply passage 76 may be inclined downwardly (in the direction ofthe arrow A1) toward the side of the first header 12 (in the directionof the arrow B2) and connected to the first header 12. Togethertherewith, the first supply passage 74 and the second supply passage 76may be connected mutually by a communication passage 78 that extendssubstantially in a horizontal direction. Moreover, the first supplypassage 74 and the second supply passage 76 need not necessarily beconnected through the communication passage 78, but may be connecteddirectly to one another.

With the inlet connector 72 according to the second modification, forexample, when the end of the supply pipe 28 that is connected to thefirst supply passage 74 is connected in an upwardly inclined manner froma location below the inlet connector 72, the supply pipe 28 can suitablybe connected substantially in a straight line with respect to the firstsupply passage 74.

More specifically, in the inlet connectors 22, 62, 72, insofar as thesecond supply passages 36, 66, 76 thereof are connected to the firstheader 12 while being inclined at a predetermined angle toward thesubstantially center region along the direction of extension (thedirection of the arrow A1) of the first header 12, no restriction isplaced on whether the first supply passages 34, 64, 74 are connected ina straight line or are connected while being inclined at a predeterminedangle with respect to the second supply passages 36, 66, 76.

Stated otherwise, depending on the layout of the supply pipe 28 to beconnected, the first supply passages 34, 64, 74 of the inlet connectors22, 62, 72 are formed at an angle that enables the end of the supplypipe 28 to be connected in a straight line together with the firstsupply passages 34, 64, 74, whereby the supply pipe 28 can be connectedeasily and reliably with respect to the first supply passages 34, 64,74.

Next, a condenser 100 according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. Constituentelements thereof, which are common with those of the condenser 10according to the above-described first embodiment, are denoted by thesame reference characters, and detailed description of such features isomitted.

As shown in FIG. 4, the condenser 100 according to the second embodimentdiffers from the condenser 10 according to the first embodiment, in thatthe inlet connector 104 connected to the first header 102 is connecteddownwardly (in the direction of the arrow A1) with respect to the center(imaginary line M) of the height dimension L of the condenser sectionS1.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the inlet connector 104 of the condenser 100is formed, for example, from a metal material, and includes a main bodyportion 30 to which a supply pipe 28 is connected and through which therefrigerant is supplied, and an inclined portion 106, which is inclinedat a predetermined angle with respect to the main body portion 30. Themain body portion 30 is disposed substantially perpendicularly withrespect to the direction of extension of the first header 102, and theinclined portion 106 is inclined at a predetermined angle upwardly tothe direction of gravity (in the direction of the arrow A2) and isconnected to the side wall of the first header 102. In addition, theinlet connector 104 is disposed at a position on the first header 102which is lower (in the direction of the arrow A1) than an imaginary lineM (=L/2) defined at one half of the height dimension L of the condensersection S1.

In the interior of the inclined portion 106, a second supply passage 108is formed, which is inclined with respect to the first supply passage 34of the main body portion 30. The second supply passage 108 penetratesalong the axial direction, and one end thereof is connected to the firstsupply passage 34, whereas the other end thereof is connected to thefirst header 102 and communicates with the interior of the first header102 through a communication hole (second opening) 110 that opens on theside wall of the first header 102.

The communication hole 110 is offset in a direction perpendicular to theaxis of the first supply passage 34, and more specifically, in thedirection of extension of the first header 102 (the directions of arrowsA1 and A2), the communication hole 110 is formed at a position which isoffset by a predetermined distance in an upward direction (the directionof the arrow A2) with respect to the first supply passage 34. Statedotherwise, the first supply passage 34 and the communication hole 110(the end of the second supply passage 108) are disposed at a distance soas not to overlap one another on a virtual plane of projectionperpendicular to the axis of the first supply passage 34.

In addition, with the above-described condenser 100, when therefrigerant, which is in a high temperature high pressure gaseous state,passes through the supply pipe 28 and is supplied to the first supplypassage 34 of the inlet connector 104, the inclined portion 106 thereofis inclined at a predetermined angle upwardly to the direction ofgravity (in the direction of the arrow A2), and communicates with theinterior space 26 a through the second supply passage 108. Therefore,the refrigerant is introduced into the first header 102 while beingdirected toward the substantially center region thereof along theheightwise direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of the firstspace 48.

In this manner, the refrigerant not only is introduced in the vicinityof the lower end in the heightwise direction (the directions of arrowsA1 and A2) of the first header 102 where the inlet connector 104 isconnected, but also is introduced toward the substantially center regionand the upward vicinity along the heightwise direction of the firstheader 102. More specifically, the refrigerant is supplied with respectto the first header 102 in a roughly uniform manner toward thesubstantially center region and the upper end side, while avoiding beingsupplied in a concentrated manner in the vicinity of the lower end wherethe inlet connector 22 is connected.

In addition, the refrigerant supplied to the first header 102 flowssubstantially in a uniform manner with respect to each of the tubes 16.When the refrigerant flows to the side of the second header 14 throughthe tubes 16, the refrigerant is cooled and liquefied by the air thatflows through and between the fins 18, and the liquefied refrigerant isintroduced into the interior space 26 b of the second header 14. At thistime, the refrigerant flows evenly with respect to the plural tubes 16,whereby the refrigerant can be cooled evenly and efficiently.

In the foregoing manner, according to the second embodiment, in thecondenser 100, for example, even in the case that, due to the layoutrelationship of the supply pipe 28 to be connected, the inlet connector104 that is connected to the first header 102 is disposed in thevicinity of the lower end thereof, by connecting the inclined portion106, which is inclined upwardly to the direction of gravity (in thedirection of the arrow A2) with respect to the side wall, the directionin which the refrigerant is introduced with respect to the first header102 can be deflected upwardly (in the direction of the arrow A2) withrespect to the direction of gravity.

For this reason, even in the case that the inlet connector 104 isdisposed in the vicinity of the lower end of the first header 102, therefrigerant can be supplied to a substantially central region in theheightwise direction of the first header 102, accompanied by therefrigerant being able to flow substantially evenly with respect to theplural tubes 16 that are arranged in parallel in the heightwisedirection. As a result, heat exchange is carried out evenly between therefrigerant and the air that passes between the plural tubes 16, coolingof the refrigerant can be performed efficiently, and the heat exchangecapability of the condenser 100 can be enhanced.

Further, with a simple structure whereby the inclined portion 106, whichis inclined upwardly, is provided in the inlet connector 104 thatsupplies the refrigerant to the first header 102, in the first space 48of the first header 102, the refrigerant is suitably distributed andflows in an evenly divided fashion to each of the tubes 16, whereby theflow amount of the refrigerant can be made substantially uniform.

Furthermore, in the case that the inlet connector 104 is disposed in thevicinity of the lower end of the first header 102, and at a positiondownwardly (in the direction of the arrow A1) from the center of theheight dimension L of the condenser section S1 in the first header 102,since the refrigerant can be introduced suitably through the inletconnector 104 toward the substantially center region along theheightwise direction (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of the firstheader 102, the refrigerant can effectively be made to flowsubstantially in a uniform manner to each of the respective tubes 16.

Further still, by joining the inlet connector 104 by brazing withrespect to the side wall of the first header 102, the plural tubes 16can be joined simultaneously by brazing with respect to the first andsecond headers 102, 14. As a result, compared to a situation in whichthe inlet connector 104 is joined with respect to the first header 102separately from when the tubes 16 are joined, the manufacturing processsteps required to produce the condenser 100 can be reduced.

Further still, with the condensers 10, 100 according to theabove-described first and second embodiments, cases have been describedin which the inlet connectors 22, 104 are connected substantiallyperpendicularly with respect to the direction of extension of the firstheaders 12, 102 (the directions of arrows A1 and A2). However, theinvention is not limited to this feature. For example, in the event thatthe second supply passages 36, 108 in the inlet connectors 22, 104 areconnected in an inclined manner toward the center in the direction ofextension of the first headers 12, 102, the first supply passages 34 ofthe inlet connectors 22, 104 may open in a left-right lateral direction(widthwise direction) with respect to the direction of extension (thedirections of arrows A1 and A2) of the first headers 12, 102.

Next, a condenser 150 according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention will be described with reference to FIG. 6. Constituentelements thereof, which are common with those of the condenser 10according to the above-described first embodiment, are denoted by thesame reference characters, and detailed description of such features isomitted.

The condenser 150 according to the third embodiment differs from thecondenser 10 according to the first embodiment in that a three-passstructure is provided, in which, in the condenser section S1, a firstheader 152 is divided (into three parts) by two first and secondpartition walls 154, 156, whereas a second header 158 is divided (intotwo parts) by a third partition wall 160, and the refrigerant iscirculated one and a half times through the plurality of tubes 16between the first header 152 and the second header 158.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the condenser 150, the first header 152 isdivided into three parts by the first partition wall 154, which isdisposed in the substantially central vicinity along the heightwisedirection (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of the first header 152,and the second partition wall 156, which is disposed in the vicinity ofthe outlet connector 24. In addition, the interior space 26 a is dividedinto a first space 162 between the first partition wall 154 and theupper wall portion of the first header 152, and a second space 164 thatis partitioned by the first partition wall 154 and the second partitionwall 156. In the first header 152, the first and second spaces 162, 164serve as parts of the condenser section S1.

In addition, in the first header 152, the inlet connector 22 isconnected with respect to the first space 162, and together therewith,the inlet connector 22 is connected at a position which is higher (inthe direction of the arrow A2) than the heightwise center (imaginaryline M) of the first space 162. Similar to the condenser 10 according tothe first embodiment, the inlet connector 22 includes the second supplypassage 36, which is inclined downwardly at a predetermined angle withrespect to the first supply passage 34.

Further, a third space 166 is formed between the lower end of theinterior space 26 a of the first header 152 and the second partitionwall 156, and the outlet connector 24 is connected to the interior space26 a.

On the other hand, in the second header 158, the third partition wall160 is disposed higher than the position where the connecting pipe 52 isconnected, and the interior space 26 b is divided by the third partitionwall 160 into a fourth space 170 that is disposed upwardly, and a fifthspace 172 that is disposed downwardly in the interior of the secondheader 158. In addition, the connecting pipe 52 is connected to thefifth space 172.

With the above-described condenser 150 according to the thirdembodiment, when the refrigerant, which is in a high temperature highpressure gaseous state, passes through the supply pipe 28 and issupplied to the first supply passage 34 of the inlet connector 22, therefrigerant is introduced into the first header 152 while being directedtoward the substantially center region thereof along the heightwisedirection (the directions of arrows A1 and A2) of the first space 162.

In this manner, the refrigerant not only is introduced in the vicinityof the upper end in the heightwise direction (the directions of arrowsA1 and A2) of the first space 162 in the first header 152 where theinlet connector 22 is connected, but also is introduced toward thesubstantially center region and the downward vicinity along theheightwise direction of the first space 162. More specifically, therefrigerant is supplied with respect to the first space 162 in a roughlyuniform manner toward the substantially center region and the lower endside in the first space 162, while avoiding being supplied in aconcentrated manner in the vicinity of the upper end where the inletconnector 22 is connected.

In addition, the refrigerant supplied to the first space 162 of thefirst header 152 flows substantially in a uniform manner with respect toeach of the tubes 16. After the refrigerant has flowed through the tubes16 into the fourth space 170 of the second header 158, the refrigerantpasses again through the respective tubes 16, flows (in the direction ofthe arrow 31) to the side of the first header 152, and is introducedinto the second space 164. The refrigerant then passes again through therespective tubes 16 from the second space 164, flows to the side of thesecond header 158 (in the direction of the arrow B2), and is introducedinto the fifth space 172. After the refrigerant has moved to theinterior space 26 c of the third header 20 through the connecting pipe52, the refrigerant is separated into gas and liquid components,whereupon only the liquid refrigerant passes through the plural tubes16, and the refrigerant is further cooled by flowing through the tubes16 to the side of the first header 152 (in the direction of the arrowB1).

Lastly, the refrigerant in a liquefied state, which has been introducedthrough the tubes 16 into the third space 166 of the first header 152,passes through the discharge passage 40 of the outlet connector 24 andis led out to the discharge pipe 42.

In the above-described condensers 10, 100, 150, the number of passesthrough the condenser section S1 is not limited, and even in the casethat the inlet connector 22 is connected at a position upwardly ordownwardly with respect to the heightwise center of the spaces of thefirst headers 12, 102, 152 that are arranged uppermost in the directionof gravity (in the direction of the arrow A2), insofar as the flow pathsare included, which are inclined toward the center in the heightwisedirection, the refrigerant can be made to flow without deviation (i.e.,evenly) with respect to each of the tubes 16 that are connected to suchspaces.

The condenser according to the present invention is not limited to theabove embodiments, but various changes may be made thereto withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A condenser having a pair of headers disposedwith an interval mutually therebetween and including spaces into which arefrigerant is introduced, plural tubes that extend in a longitudinaldirection and opposite ends of which are connected respectively to theheaders, and plural fins disposed between adjacent ones of the tubes,wherein a condenser core is constituted from the tubes and the fins, andheat exchange of the refrigerant is performed in the condenser core,wherein: an inlet connector and an outlet connector are both connectedto one of the headers, a first pipe is connected to the inlet connectorand the refrigerant is supplied to the first pipe, a second pipe isconnected to the outlet connector and the refrigerant is discharged fromthe second pipe; the inlet connector comprises in interior thereof aflow path through which the refrigerant flows; and the flow path isinclined at a predetermined angle toward a center of the space along adirection in which the space extends, the space being arranged uppermostin a direction of gravity in the one of the headers.
 2. The condenseraccording to claim 1, wherein the flow path includes a first opening towhich the first pipe is connected, and a second opening connected to theone of the headers, and the first opening and the second opening arearranged so as not to overlap on a virtual plane of projectionperpendicular to an axis of the first opening.
 3. The condenseraccording to claim 2, wherein the flow path comprises a changing unitconfigured to change a direction of flow of the refrigerant from thefirst opening to the second opening.
 4. The condenser according to claim3, wherein the changing unit comprises an inclined portion, which isinclined toward a heightwise center of the condenser core.
 5. Thecondenser according to claim 1, wherein the condenser core includes afirst core section, through which the refrigerant flows from the one ofthe headers in which the inlet connector is disposed to another of theheaders, and a second core section, through which the refrigerant afterhaving circulated in the other of the headers then flows to the one ofthe headers, the space, which is arranged uppermost in the direction ofgravity, being disposed in the first core section, and the inletconnector being disposed upwardly or downwardly in the direction ofgravity with respect to a heightwise center of the space.
 6. Thecondenser according to claim 1, wherein the inlet connector and the oneof the headers are joined by brazing.